Long before he won a Pulitzer, @gettleman wrote an off-the-wall feature for @latimes about aspiring actors living an L.A. apartment complex. Watching Jeffrey get edited by the late Terry McGarry, a newsman of the old school, taught me a lesson in #editing I’d like to share. 1/6

Since it was a Hollywood story, Jeffrey wrote it partly, just partly, as a screenplay. Terry began editing; his screen glowed with changes. I anticipated butting heads. But when he and Jeffrey sat down together to polish the piece, they looked to be having a ball. 2/ 6

Most editors would have toned down the faux screenplay, made it a more conventional story. Terry did the opposite. He made it more like a conventional screenplay, and he and Jeffrey began tossing in more dialogue and screenplay lingo, like “CUT TO” and “FADE OUT.” 3/6

The final story was wonderfully odd and funny, even touching. Jeffrey, Terry and I worked in the Times’ Valley Edition back then and the story only appeared in our regional edition. Downtown editors wouldn’t run it. Too weird. Too unlike a newspaper story. 4/6

Explaining his edits, Terry said something like, “If you’re going to use a gimmick, USE IT.” Yes, gimmicks can be tiresome; use with caution, don't get too cute. But my takeaway: if you’re going to try something unorthodox, don’t go half way. Commit. 5/6

And if your unorthodox approach, structure, style or angle doesn't work, revise. Oh, and here's the screenplay/story: https://www.latimes.com/archives/la-xpm-1999-feb-20-me-9848-story.html 6/6